PelhamHigh School

Primary Function: As a member of the system’s counseling and guidance staff, the high school counselor provides a comprehensive counseling and guidance program for high school students; consults and collaborates with teachers, parents, and staff to enhance effectiveness in helping students; and provides support to other high school educational programs.

Major Job Responsibilities:

• Implements the high school comprehensive counseling and guidance program curriculum

• Guides and counsels groups and individual students through the development of personal, social, educational, and career plans

• Counsels with small groups and individual students

• Consults and collaborates with teachers, staff, and parents in understanding and meeting the needs of students

• Refers students with problems and their parents to appropriate specialists, programs, or outside agencies

• Participates in activities that contribute to the effective operation of the school

• Plans, evaluates, and revises the counseling and guidance program

• Pursues professional growth

  Illustrative Key Duties:

1. Implements the high school comprehensive counseling and guidance program curriculum: Conducts counseling learning activities in the classroom for each grade level during the year in collaboration with the teaching staff; consults with and is a resource to teachers to facilitate the infusion of counseling content into the regular education curriculum.

2. Guides and counsels groups and individual students through the development of educational and career plans: Collaborates with middle school personnel to assist students in making a smooth transition to high school; provides orientation activities for incoming students and their parents; informs students and parents of tests results and their implications for educational and career planning; guides students in updating their high school four-year educational plans; plans and coordinates the registration of students; guides seniors to help them develop and implement appropriate steps regarding their post-high school educational and/or career plans; coordinates the implementation of personal, social, educational, and career issues; provides for the systematic and efficient dissemination of current, accurate information needed by students and/or parents as they develop their educational or career plans;

3. Consults with small groups and individual students: Conducts structured, goal-oriented counseling sessions to meet the identified needs of individuals and groups of students.

4. Consults and collaborates with teachers, staff, and parents in understanding and meeting the needs of students: Participates in staffing and team meetings; plans and conducts staff development programs and activities; attends conferences with teachers and/or parents and/or students; plans and conducts parent education programs; assists families with school-related problems and issues

5. Refers students with problems and their parents to appropriate specialists, special programs, or outside agencies: Consults and collaborates with school system specialists such as school psychologists, social workers, and nurses; consults with and refers to community-based resources including psychologists, psychiatrists, physicians, service agencies, and others.

6. Participates in activities that contribute to the effective operation of the school: Cooperates and collaborates with other professionals in enhancing the education of students; establishes and maintains effective relationships with instructional departments and administrators; cooperates with other school personnel in placing students with special needs in appropriate programs; interprets group test results to faculty and administration for use in enhancing instruction; communicates with administrators, teachers, staff, students, parents, and the community regarding the counseling and guidance program and its role in the educational program; participates in the implementation of the school system assessment program.

7. Plans, evaluates, and revises the counseling and guidance program: Reviews the counseling and guidance program annually with the guidance department staff and guidance program advisory committee; communicates regularly with other counseling staff to establish and maintain a sequential comprehensive counseling and guidance program; identifies student needs periodically and uses the results for program planning; establishes a planning calendar for counseling and guidance program activities; evaluates the counseling and guidance program.

8. Pursues professional growth: Attends local, state, and national staff development programs; joins professional counseling and guidance associations; attends local, state, and national workshops and conferences sponsored by professional organizations

Comprehensive Counseling and Guidance State Model for Alabama Public Schools